Region I-4A softball: Randall Lady Raiders still out to prove their worth

No one knew whether the Randall Lady Raiders could recover from losing several talented players and a head coach from the Region I-4A semifinalist softball team from a season ago.

Turns out, the Lady Raiders are still a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs.

“Our season has been pretty good so far,” senior shortstop Saybra Hahmann said. “Losing the people that we did last year, we weren’t sure what was going to come of it, but we did really good. A lot of people stepped up.”

They stepped up enough that Randall (23-7) takes on El Paso Canutillo (27-9) in a Region I-4A best-of-three area playoff series beginning at 5 p.m. Friday at Andrews. Game 2 is set for 11 a.m. Saturday. The if-necessary Game 3 would start 30 minutes after Game 2’s conclusion.

Randall’s first-year coach Bobby Scott said he knew the Lady Raiders were a good team despite losing several contributors.

“Steve Singleton, the former coach here, set a pretty high standard for Randall softball,” Scott said.

“I felt it was important to come in and win this year,” Scott said, “and I think the girls have done that for me. We did lose a lot of talent last year. I knew coming in we had a senior-oriented team and we had some talent coming back. I think we’ve pulled together when we’ve needed to.”

The Lady Raiders swept Lake Dallas, 7-0 and 9-6, in last week’s bidistrict series. Senior pitcher Alexis Del Toro, who tossed the first-game shutout, said she is reaching her stride in the circle after breaking two fingers early in the season.

“With the breaks healed, it has really let me get the hang of it,” Del Toro said.

Del Toro said she is hoping the Lady Raiders continue to shock the naysayers.

“We have been doing really good,” Del Toro said. “It’s honestly a surprise to a lot of people because they really thought with losing our head coach and losing so many players that we would come out really weak. We’ve been really strong. We were 14-2 in district. We surprised everyone, and it’s a really good thing.”

Scott said the playoffs are an exciting time.

“The competition will get stiffer each week,” Scott said. “I know a little bit about them but not a whole lot. I know they are going to be a quality opponent. I think the team feels confident. I think we played some of our best softball last weekend. I’m only hoping that carries over the this week, and I think it will.”